Page 149 of The Sweetest Return

She had been good to me in a season when I needed more care than I wanted to admit. She had been patient until patience started costing her pride.

She deserved better than me dodging the truth because I hated how ugly it made me look.

My thumb hovered over the screen.

Then I typed.

Me: Possibly.

I stared at the word, hated it, and kept going.

Me: Probably.

Me: But I didn’t know that while I was in it. I promise you that.

The dots appeared.

Disappeared.

Appeared again.

Aubrey: That doesn’t make it hurt less.

Me: I know.

Aubrey: I loved you.

I swallowed.

Me: I know.

Aubrey: And you let me keep trying to become somebody you could love back the same way. That’s fucked up, Dre.

I looked through the glass door.

Mama was wiping syrup from Kayla’s mouth. Danielle was talking with her hands while Keith’s arm rested along the back of her chair. Pops sat at the table, not looking at me but knowing exactly where I stood.

That truth sat heavy because it had earned the right.

I typed slower.

Me: You’re right.

I’m sorry.

Aubrey didn’t answer right away.

When she did, the message was short.

Aubrey: Lose my number.

Another came seconds later.

Aubrey: I’m losing yours.

I stood with the phone in my hand until the screen dimmed.

That hurt.